13 Siblings, Some Shackled to Beds, Were Held Captive by Parents, Police in California Say

A 17-year-old girl who said she was being held captive by her parents in her home about two hours southeast of Los Angeles escaped on Sunday and alerted the authorities, who then rescued her 12 siblings — several of whom were found shackled to their beds and malnourished — the authorities said on Monday.

The 17-year-old used a cellphone she found in the home to call the police with her startling claim about her siblings being held against their will, the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department said. Officers found the girl’s 12 siblings — who range in age from 2 to 29 — in the foul-smelling house in Perris, Calif., living in the dark without access to adequate food or water, the department said.

Some of the children were restrained with chains and padlocks. “The parents were unable to immediately provide a logical reason why their children were restrained in that manner,” the Sheriff’s Department said in a statement.

The officers did not immediately recognize that seven of the 13 siblings were adults because they were emaciated. The sheriff’s office said that the 17-year-old girl who called 911 looked to be 10 years old.

Their parents, David Allen Turpin, 57, and Louise Anna Turpin, 49, were both arrested on nine counts each of torture and child endangerment. They were being held in jail with bail set at $9 million each, the authorities said.

The Sheriff’s Department did not say how long the siblings may have been held captive.

Sheriff’s deputies provided food and water to the siblings, who claimed they were starving. They were later transported to hospitals for treatment. Their conditions were not released.

California records show that Mr. Turpin had received state approval to run a private school, the Sandcastle Day School, at the family’s home, a one-story stucco house in a subdivision built in recent years. The school enrolled six students this year, in grades six through 12, and Mr. Turpin was listed as the principal.

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The Turpins’ home in Perris, Calif., on Monday. The police said it was dark inside and smelled foul.CreditSandy Huffaker/Getty Images

In a neighborhood where residents often walk outside and children run around a nearby playground, the Turpins stood out for never being seen, neighbors said. Dennis Cooke, who lives two blocks from their home, said he saw Mr. Turpin once but never the siblings.

Roberto Gomez, who lives in the house behind the Turpins, said the family kept lights on inside the house at all hours but never seemed to come outside. Another neighbor, Julio Reyes, said that last year he saw teenagers mowing the family’s yard and helping put up Christmas decorations.

Perris, about 70 miles southeast of Los Angeles, is one of the largest cities in Riverside County, which became an emblem of bankruptcy and foreclosure during the depths of the recent recession. Known as the Inland Empire, the region has rebounded in recent years.

The couple filed for bankruptcy in California in 2011, stating in court documents that they owed between $100,000 and $500,000 in debt. At that time, Mr. Turpin worked as an engineer at Northrop Grumman, the defense contractor, and earned $140,000 annually, records show. Ms. Turpin’s occupation was listed as a homemaker.

Their bankruptcy lawyer, Ivan Trahan, said in a phone interview on Monday night that the parents spoke often about their children. They had 12 at the time of their bankruptcy, Mr. Trahan said, adding that the children never visited his law office.

“They spoke about them highly,” Mr. Trahan said.

He said Ms. Turpin told him that the family loved Disneyland in Southern California and visited often.

“We remember them as a very nice couple,” he said. “This is shocking.”

The Turpins moved to California from Texas around 2010, the parents wrote on Facebook, after Mr. Turpin returned to work for Northrop Grumman. On a family photo of the parents and 12 children (the youngest had not yet been born) posted on their Facebook page in 2011, a friend asked if all the children pictured were theirs.

“Yes all 12 are our children and we are very proud of them,” the Turpins replied.

Sandra E. Garcia contributed reporting.

A version of this article appears in print on , on Page A15 of the New York edition with the headline: Parents Put Children in Chains, Police Say. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe